Secrets
by maxandfang4ever
Summary: But for some reason, I couldn't get her out of my mind. She struck me as different. In a good way. Not that I even knew her enough to determine anything about her. She was very guarded. She seemed to be hiding something. Just like me.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: No matter how much I wish, Maximum Ride and its characters will never belong to me.**

**Hope y'all like the story, and make sure you check out my other stories! I've been having major writers block so ANY ideas, reviews and suggestions would be great since I just can't come up with anything! **** The Trust Game and Maximum Ride of Highschool!**

FPOV

I cringed as I saw a familiar flash of dark red hair standing by a nearby tree. I looked away, turning my face downwards and picked up the pace. My strides quickened as I watched the white rocks fly under my feet. White dust erupted from the rocky path, and all I could do was pray she wouldn't see me. Unfortunately my prayer was too late, and I was greeted by red-haired girl as she made her way onto the path next to me.

"Fang! What a coincidence! I never thought I'd see you out here!" she squealed, her voice almost as unattractive as she was. Lissa. Long, red hair that trailed down her back. She had sparkling green eyes, above her shining white teeth. She was pretty. But her personality was nowhere near that. She was probably one of the fakest people I'd ever met, and she absolutely refused to leave me alone. We aren't dating, we aren't friends, and I don't want to even look at her but she freaking follows me wherever I go.

Instead of responding to Lissa, I just shrugged my shoulders and kept walking, still at a near jogging pace. "Fangy, slow down! You're almost running," she chirped. I don't understand girls. At all. She found me walking alone on this same path every single day, and every single day she would "coincidently" run into me and would stay and try and flirt with me (read: try to make out with me) constantly. If she'd been doing it every day, wouldn't she get the hint that I didn't want anything to do with her? I ignored her, tried to avoid her and never tried to please her. How long would it take her to get it?

But the sad part was that Lissa wasn't the only one. All the girls in the school, not just my grade, the entire school seemed to follow me wherever I went. I hadn't found a single one that was halfway decent. They were all sluts who had zero personality. It was gross. And yet they all still thought they could follow me around.

She pulled out a tube of pink goo and put in on her lips, as if that somehow would make her more appealing. I continued to ignore her, as usual. "Come on Fang!" she tried using a seductive voice, but honestly it just made her sound constipated or something. "We can go in the trees and have a little fun," she asked gesturing to the overgrown bushes, trees and shrubs that surrounded our paths.

I turned towards her and watched her face light up, "No." I said simply, making it obvious I wanted nothing to do with her.

"I promise it'll be fun, and we can always do something afterwards too," she added a wink this time, closing one green eye to reveal layers of mascara, eyeliner and some other powdery stuff on her eye.

"No," I replied again. We got to a busy street a few miles from where I lived and I turned around beginning my walk home.

And that's when she pounced. I groaned, as I knew it was going to happen, since it took place almost every day. She tried to throw herself on me, but I was ready for it. I took off sprinting, leaving a cloud of dust in my trail. I took a glance behind me to see a desperate Lissa chasing after me. I took my chances, and veered off the trail to a smaller path entirely surrounded by trees and plants. It was dark with tree roots shooting up out of the rocky soil, and I stayed at a steady jog watching the ground carefully to avoid tripping. I wasn't sure if Lissa had noticed me leave the trail, and I grit my teeth hoping that I hadn't come to a dead end.

I turned around one last time, and I could hear the heavy footfalls of her fancy gym shoes slowing down near the entrance of my secret path. I wasn't watching the path in front of me and I fit a huge tree root and went face first into the dirt. I broke my fall with my wrists, and quickly got up not noticing the flow of blood leaving a gash in my knee. By this time, I was sure Lissa was going to find me and I began to get ready to sprint off if I needed to, when I looked up and I saw a pair of beat up Nike gym shoes, blocking the trail in front of me.

A girl with natural sun streaked light brown hair, and a pair of chocolate brown eyes looked down at me warily.

"What are you doing?" she asked, looking confused.

"Long story. Do you have any hiding spots around here? This girl has been following me for miles and I need to get away from her," I blurted out, realizing how desperate I was.

She looked me over, and then with a slight grin gave a quick nod. She motioned for me to follow her and I quickly nodded, giving a silent thanks. "Here," she said quietly pointing to a giant tree. I just looked at her for a second, and she rolled her eyes. "It's really not that difficult, just climb the tree," she muttered under her breath to me. I glared at her as she quickly scaled the tree, getting to a high branch decently fast. I heard a few twigs snap, and made the immediate decision to go up the tree with this girl.

Her brown eyes swirled as she looked down at me, watching me climb. Once I'd made it up the tree, I looked back up to find where to go and the girl was gone. My eyes quickly scanned the tree searching for her. I heard her laugh and then she moved and I saw her come back into view between several branches which made her invisible. I rolled my eyes, and carefully made my way up the branches to where she was covered by shadows and darkness. My usual attire of all black helped me blend into the trees quite well, as did my natural behavior of silently standing still. Unnoticed.

"Fang!" I heard Lissa call and I couldn't help but let a small smirk creep onto my face as I looked down, and saw her searching right and left for me. Sucks to suck, I thought and felt relieved that I had escaped for once. I kept completely still and watched her get closer and closer, until she was right beneath me. She had no idea where I was, and her curious eyes turned frustrated and angry as she stormed back onto the main path. I waited in silence, listening to her footsteps grow quieter until they disappeared altogether. She was gone.

I watched as the girl who had basically saved me leapt down from her high perch on one of the branches. She landed gracefully despite how high she had jumped from, and turned around to see if I was going to come down. I didn't want to get shown up by a girl, especially a stranger, so I jumped off of my branch without a second thought, landing almost as neatly as she had.

We both stood there listening to the birds chirping and studying each other. She had no makeup on, or at least I couldn't tell, and she had long tan legs, with dirt covering her knees. She pushed a piece of hair behind her ear, and I realized she wasn't ugly. I'm not saying she was pretty, just different.

"Well thanks," I muttered breaking the silence, turning to go back the way I came.

"Sure," she replied simply. As I started the walk back home alone, I realized I had no idea what her name was, or how old she was or anything. Not that it mattered. But for some reason, I couldn't get her out of my mind. She struck me as different. In a good way. Not that I even knew her enough to determine anything about her.

She was very guarded. She seemed to be hiding something.

Just like me.


	2. Chapter 2

MPOV

"Well thanks," the dark-haired boy said quietly as he turned around to leave.

"Sure," I muttered, pushing some more hair out of my eyes. His head was bent forward, and he had scruffy black hair that hung low, and covered part of his eyes when he spoke. Once he was gone, I realized I had no idea who he was. All I knew was that his name was Fang, because that girl chasing him had called it out. I looked up at the sky; the sun's orangey glow reassured me that I still had time before I needed to get home. Not that I wanted to be at home. I hated it.

I climbed back up to my spot in the tree I had just leapt down from. I came here every day as sort of an escape from my life. It was peaceful and quiet here. I could forget my problems. Until I got back home at least, then life came flying back at me full speed.

School was starting soon. 3 days. Now don't get me wrong, I am not one of those kids who loves school and learning and homework and all that crap, I just like it because it's a way for me to be away from home. In case you didn't get it, I hated being at home. I hated it with a passion, and only went home when it got so dark I couldn't see.

I leaned back in my tree, closing my eyes. I was reliving memories of the good old days. When everything was perfect. But then one night, one car accident ruined it all. You don't realize how great everything is until it's gone. Trust me on this one, I know. For some reason, I couldn't get that boy out of my head. His obsidian black eyes, with a few specks of gold sent thoughts flooding through my brain. It was the first time I'd ever seen him. He looked to be about 16, like me. I'm not exactly a people person, so I wouldn't know if he went to school with me, if he was new, or if he was in a different grade. I need to protect myself and making friends isn't exactly the right way to do that. When you learn to trust and care for people, the more hurt you get in the end. I get hurt enough; I don't need any more heartbreak.

No matter how hard I tried, he kept coming back to mind for some reason. Except I didn't know why either. All I did was save him from some desperate slut, who I actually knew but extremely disliked. She chased guys around and stalked them, thinking it was cute or seductive or something. Too bad it never worked. I showed him my tree and let him hide out for a few minutes until she was gone. Why was I making such a big deal over this? I cleared my head, and just thought about school and things I could look forward to. I never thought about what was coming for me when I got home. If I thought about things like that, I probably couldn't make it through the day.

I sighed, noticing the sun had faded to a deep red-pink color and realized it was getting late. I grimaced knowing I needed to start making my way home. I slid down from my tree and started at a steady jog towards home. I took my usual way home, passing the cemetery. I shuddered as it came into view, but then decided that today I would go in. It was long overdue anyway.

The gate creaked open as I pushed it, and I made my way through the overgrown grass surrounding the graves and tombstones. Even though I hadn't been here in a while, I knew exactly where grave was. It was one of those things you know backwards and forwards no matter what happens. I'd grabbed a handful of brightly colored flowers on my way and I clutched them tightly, making my way to the spot I knew so well. I saw it right below me.

_Valencia Martinez _

_1969-2006_

_She is an angel, and will be missed now and always. Rest in peace. You were an amazing mom, wife, daughter and sister. We will always love you._

**(A/N This story takes place in 2013 so this happened 7 years ago)**

I placed my flowers down near the headstone, arranging them so they framed her name and the entire note. I still missed her so much. Ever since that one day 7 years ago, my life was different. Nothing has ever been the same, or ever will be. And I'm not even kidding.

I knelt down, giving a silent prayer to her saying how much I missed her and loved her. I closed my eyes, breathing in the sweet scent of the collection of flowers lying on her grave. Even though it had been 7 years, it was still hard for me to see that grave. It made my heart hurt, bringing back too many memories of my childhood. They were mainly happy memories, but it made me sad to think of everything I was missing. How much better everything was when she was alive. I squeezed my eyes shut, trying not to get lost in all the memories and thoughts.

Why me? The question raced through my head so often; sometimes multiple times a day. Why did I get dealt this awful hand of cards? The cards that were my life.

I grimaced as I decided I better head back before Jeb flipped out. Not that he would even care where I was. Considering he was practically never sober when he was home.

After a 10 minute jog, I reached the sidewalk leading up to my house. My face fell as I noticed the car in the driveway, meaning Jeb was home. The grass crunched under my feet as I walked to the front door. We hardly got rain, and no one ever felt the need to water the yard, do landscaping or even clean the house. I did as much as I could, but I couldn't do it all. I was in high school for crying out loud, this shouldn't be my responsibility.

The door was unlocked, and I leaned against it pushing it open. The front room was dark, and the house was silent. My mouth upturned in disgust as I made my way near the kitchen, the smell of alcohol hitting my nose. I tried to keep as quiet as I could, inching my way to the stairs so I could sneak up to my room, without being noticed.

Depending on the day, Jeb would either be in a bad, violent mood or quiet, reserved and neglecting mood. Either option was equally as bad but I would rather avoid him and not find out.

I'd gotten to be an expert at stealth; making my way anywhere without a sound. I was at the top of the stairs, about to sneak into my bedroom when I heard the door to the kitchen slam, and heavy footsteps gradually grew louder. I knew better than to move, and I froze instantly in my spot. I didn't dare make a sound, and I held my position without breathing in fear of giving myself away. I listened carefully and my face fell as I heard the footsteps grow louder as they grew closer to where I was. The light in the kitchen went on, and I heard him slam something down on the table. The kitchen door opened and he came out, stopping at the bottom of the staircase.

"MAX!" he yelled, an empty beer bottle in hand. I knew better than to answer, and stayed frozen right where I was.

He looked about to explode and fear and sadness clutched at my heart as I realized he was having a really bad day.

In other words, he was having a violent day.

My stomach felt like a rock as he motioned for me to come downstairs.


	3. Chapter 3

**Thanks for reading, and please review and let me know what you think! Let me know if you have any ideas or suggestions! Check out my other stories, Trust Game and Maximum Ride of High school! Fly on, kids.**

FPOV

I sighed as I woke up on Monday morning. First day of school. To be honest, I was actually looking forward to school because it was an excuse to be away from home for 7 hours. Sure the whole learning, homework thing sucked but it was better than being anywhere near my house. Okay, anything was better than being near my house. I rolled out of bed, and grabbed my usual attire. Jeans and a black shirt, today a V-neck. I ran a hand through my messy black hair, and then brushed it out of my eyes. I looked in the mirror, and saw the reflection of someone else. It didn't even look like me, even though I knew it was. The cold, hard eyes stared straight ahead and I tried faking a smile. It looked stupid. I decided that I just wouldn't smile that much, no reason to fake it.

"Angel! Be quiet! God-" my father yelled, the sound coming from down the hall. I froze, and I heard him slam door. No.

Fear clutched my heart and I through my door open, and sprinted down the hall to Angel's room. I heard her crying softly, and all I was hoping that he hadn't hit her. She was only 7. I burst through the door, running over to shield Angel with my body.

"Fang," my father's cold voice began.

"Leave her alone," I said, steel behind my voice. I would protect Angel with my life. He glared at me, his roughly shaven face getting closer to mine. I wanted to look away, pretend this wasn't my life and that it was just a nightmare but I couldn't. Angel needed me.

He pulled away, but then took his hand and brought it down hard across my face. The blow landed, snapping my jaw around and it echoed through the house. I didn't know where my mom was, and frankly I didn't care. She wouldn't help. She was no better than my father, just less violent.

I could taste the metallic blood mixing with my spit in my mouth from where I'd bit my cheek. I grimaced, hoping that my face didn't get a huge bruise on it. I always had to make sure that the bruises were hidden by clothes. It wasn't exactly easy, but if I wore pants all the time it was usually okay. It was a lot harder to explain why I was always beat up and broken looking.

He landed a few more blows, but I'd turned by now and his hard fists slammed into my back, sending pain shooting through my spine. "No Fang," I heard Angel cry quietly. I shook my head, motioning for her to stay quiet. I whispered that everything would be alright, as I always did. No use in frightening her. She had it hard enough as it was.

After some time, my dad decided that he was done beating me, and stalked out of the room probably heading out to work. I honestly am not sure what he does, all I know is that he brings in enough money for us to live off of, but not an excessive amount.

I pulled a dress out of Angel's closet, and helped her put it on. She had a lot less bruises than me, and hers were so much easier to disguise, but still…it wasn't an easy or pleasant task. Her big blue eyes were full of tears, and I brushed them away.

"Fang he's hurting you," he said her little voice breaking.

"I don't care," I replied quietly. "Come on, it's time for you to go to school."

I wrapped her in a hug, promising her that one day everything would be okay and we would be happy. The elementary school is pretty close, so I just dropped her off on my way.

I was a junior this year and I walked into the high school making my way back to the locker I'd had for 2 years already. I grabbed my books and made my way to first period. I got plenty of stares from girls along the way, and I just looked away ignoring them as best I could. I tried to brush my hair over my face using my hand to cover where my dad had hit me. I didn't want it to look like I was covered in bruises already.

I sighed and sat down in my chair heavily, dropping my books on top of my desk. My teacher looked up from her computer but realized nothing important was going on, and shifted her gaze back downwards. I was slumped over in my chair, and wasn't paying attention as a swarm of girls entered the classroom. They were in a pack led by none other than Lissa.

I overheard her telling them about her stalking over the summer. I heard a series of high-pitched giggles and sighs, and Lissa kept talking. "And then he we went running together on that one path! And we even went on this secret path together," she exclaimed. Lies. I would never go anywhere with her.

"No," I said out of nowhere, but still listening to their conversations. Her friends all gaped, looking at her wide-eyed.

"Fangy, what are you talking about?" Lissa asked staring at me. Her eyes were growing cold, but she was still smiling, trying to make a good impression on her friends. "Don't you remember?"

"His name is Fang," said a vaguely familiar but unknown voice behind me. I heard Lissa snort in disgust before I turned around to see who it was.

Woah. It was that girl who had helped me get away from Lissa 3 days ago. So she did go to this school, and she was maybe in my grade.

"Who are you?" Lissa asked nostrils flaring, taking a step closer to me. I tried to inch away but she just kept scooting closer.

"Who care who I am," she muttered. "Just saying, his name is Fang not Fangy or Fangles or whatever the hell you call him, and I doubt anyone would wanna go anywhere with you." With that, she turned around and walked away.

"That bitch," Lissa muttered under breath.

"No she's not," I surprised myself by saying. Her eyes flew open in shock, her sparkly green eyes locked on mine. I rolled my eyes and looked away, and Lissa huffed out a breath and turned on her heel, her pack of girls close behind.

I realized that I still didn't know who she was, even after she'd asked. She seemed like someone who didn't want to be known. Someone who wasn't exactly a people person. She still seemed closed-off. The more I thought about it, the more she reminded me of someone I knew.

Me.

But how did she keep turning up to get me out of these situations with Lissa? And why did she even bother to help me?

Despite my lack of social skills and wanting to meet new people, I was going to figure out who she was even if it killed me. After she'd saved me twice, I needed to know.


	4. Chapter 4

**Thanks for reading, please review so I know how the stories going! Let me know of any questions or suggestions! Please, please, please review! Thankss and happy reading**

MPOV

I turned the corner heading to my first period class when Lissa and her group of bitches cut me off. They flipped their hair over their shoulder, puckered up their lips while coating them with lipgloss and talked about Fang. But not just Fang. Dream boy Fang, and their future husband Fang. Frankly, it was disgusting.

I figured they were just talking about some random hot guy, but then I remembered that was the kid I'd helped escape Lissa. The one that had been popping up in my head all day that day. It figures that by the time I forgot about him, he just happened to be here.

I sighed, tugging at my sweatshirt so it would come down lower. Remember when I came home from the cemetery and my dad was having a 'violent' day? Yeah, well I remember too, and have some nasty bruises and scratches to show it. Thankfully nothing to permanent had happened to me, but one day something was going to happen. Something I might not be able to take. Physically and mentally. I sighed, pulling the sleeves of the hoodie down past my wrists to hide the black and blue on my arms. This was definitely not something everyone needed to know about.

Pushing a few pieces of hair out of my face, I set my head back and walked into the classroom. Much to my surprise, I saw that Fang boy sitting in the back looking like he would rather be anywhere else. Lissa and her swarm of girls were surrounding him, and she was telling everyone how they went running together all the time over the summer.

"No," he replied, not even bothering to turn towards them.

"But Fangy-" she crooned, and he grimaced listening to her swoon over him.

"His name is Fang," I stated bluntly, walking up behind them. Her jaw dropped, leaving her wide eyed and appalled that I had the nerve to cut her off.

"Who are you?" she asked glaring, flipping her dark red hair over her shoulder. She looked me up and down a few times, with a disapproving look on her face.

"Who cares who I am," I muttered under my breath. "Just saying, his name is Fang not Fangy or Fangles or whatever the hell you call him, and I doubt anyone would wanna go anywhere with you." She seemed to be alittle confused on the whole situation, and I decided to clear it up for her. With that, I turned on my heel and walked away to find somewhere far away from her to sit. The bell hadn't rung yet, but class was no doubt going to begin shortly.

"That bitch," I heard her mutter to her friends. I rolled my eyes. It was funny because I didn't care what she thought of me. To be honest, I don't really care what anyone thinks of me.

"No she's not," I heard a voice reply, as I turned around I noticed the dark-haired boy, Fang or whatever his name was, turn around and glare at Lissa. I couldn't help but smile a little bit.

Lissa looked immensely frustrated and waved to her friends to go sit somewhere else. Once the class started, I tried to focus, but I couldn't help sneaking glances over at that Fang guy. He seemed quiet and reserved. One of those guys you have to open up, and get to know them really well before they opened up. He looked mysterious and thoughtful.

Once class was over, I noticed him get up and look over towards me. I quickly cast my gaze downwards, slung my backpack over my shoulder and walked out the door. Yeah, I'd helped him twice. That didn't mean I wanted to meet him or talk to him or explain why I did it. I didn't even know why. It was one of those things you just do because it's the right thing to do.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him holding his books to his chest, quickening up his pace to try and catch up with me. All I wanted was to get to class, and be able to forget about everything going on at home. But he was definitely not helping me get away from all my problems. For some reason, I felt like he connected with all my problems…but I'd never even talked to him. There was seriously something wrong with me.

"Wait," I heard him call out after me, noticing me walk even quicker. "Please," he tried and I hesitated.

I turned around, but didn't say anything. I looked him over, his tan skin covered by another black shirt, matching his dark hair that seemed to always stay in front of his eyes. His eyes weren't exactly a color like most peoples were. They were truly black, and seemed to swirl on in an endless abyss. Tiny flecks of gold floated in the black liquid, catching the light. His lips were pressed tightly together, and he looked as though he didn't want to talk.

"I just wanted to say thank you, for helping me today again," he began, his voice low. As he talked his shiny white teeth glinted and I was almost mesmerized by his overall body image.

I shrugged my shoulders, "Anytime." I began to turn around to get to class, and I noticed him bite his lip. He looked like he wanted to say something, but I wasn't sure if he was or not.

"Can you at least tell me your name?" he asked, looking directly at me. He seemed genuine. Sincere. Most guys in my grade were jerks who just tried to hit on as many girls as they could. He seemed beyond that. Like he had an inkling of respect for people.

"Max," I told him simply. Just Max. Most people think it's short for Maxine or something. Technically, my mom named me Maximum, but I haven't been called that in years. Not since she passed away at least.

He nodded, in silent approval. "Thanks again Max," he told me before turning around and walking into a classroom down the hall on the left.

I made my way to my English class which was thankfully just a few doors down, and sat down in a desk near the back just as the bell was ringing.

"Good morning, and welcome back to school," the teacher chirped brightly. She seemed to have way to much enthusiasm for being in this big old school while the sun was shining just outside the window. It was still August, and the weather had stayed beautiful. "This year, the books we will be reading will be…" she trailed off, excitedly explaining all of the books and units we would be exploring this year. Unfortunately for her, she was preaching to the choir since no one here seemed to care in the least bit, on how Shakespeare's works would affect our lives. My interest arose when she mentioned that we would read the Heart of Darkness, but that was about it for that period. I pulled out my notebook, absent mindedly doodling near the edges.

Once the bell rang, I went to the rest of my morning classes, still in a daze from it being our first day back. I sighed as the bell rang for lunch, and I dumped my books in my locker. We hardly had any edible food in the house, and when we did I made sure it got to Ella.

Ella was my younger sister, and she was only in 6th grade. At 12 years old, she was practically still a kid. She'd had the worst childhood ever, and I wanted to give her anything I could to make it slightly better. She'd grown up way to fast, and was more mature than her years allowed. When you looked into her eyes, they had that expression you saw in wise people. People who had seen years of hardship and trouble in their lives. She had that look about her.

As I thought about that on my way to lunch, I realized I knew someone else who had that same look.

Fang.


	5. Chapter 5

FPOV  
I walked into the cafeteria, holding a flimsy paper sack with scarcely enough food to eat for my lunch, which would probably be my dinner too. I realized I didn't want to sit with anyone, particularly since I had no interest in anyone at this school.

Except for Max. She was okay, not that I knew her well at all. She just seemed beyond everyone and mature enough not to flirt and be straight up obnoxious all the time.

"Fang!" I heard a bunch of high-pitched voices chirped from a nearby table. A group of girls flagged me down trying to get me to sit with them. That was the last thing I wanted to do. I wasn't exactly friendly so even as a junior here there were only a few people that I didn't mind sitting with but unfortunately none of them were in my lunch period. After quickly scanning the cafeteria for a familiar face, I gave up and turned around heading out of the lunch room.

Occasionally my face would throb where my dad had hit me this morning and my back was definitely going to be very bruised by later tonight. I just hoped it didn't become obvious. What would I say? I ran into a wall? I don't think so.

I saw my old English teacher who had really liked me and I really liked. He helped me with some other things too when I had him and I tried for a smile and it ended in a grimace.

"Hey Fang, you okay?" he asked me, concern flooding his eyes. He was in his late forties, the same age as my dad. But my dad is a monster.

"Yeah, everything's fine," I said. I tried to look him in the eye, but I just couldn't bring myself to do it.

He gave me a look that said he suspected differently. "It's okay, really Mr. Roberts." _Liar. _I thought to myself. _Liar. Liar. Liar. When is anything ever okay? _

"Take care Fang, you're a real good kid," he gave me one last look before around and heading to the teacher's lounge. It felt weird hearing a compliment. When I was 10 I started keeping a tally of all the nice things and sincere compliments my parents gave me. From then until now I've had four. And I'm pretty sure they were somewhat sarcastic.

I stood in the hall and ended up staring at my reflection in the glass doors that were near the main office. I stared at my distorted reflection and looked at the darker splotch on my face where a bruise had already begun to form. I balled my hands in to fists at my sides, my fingers digging into my palms. I hadn't realized how hard I was pressing until I held warm blood trickle out of a few spots on my hands. At the moment I didn't even care, the physical pain was a distraction from all the mental pain I was feeling.

I had been staring at the ground but a sudden movement made me jump and turn around. Max, caramel colored eyes and sun-streaked hair was standing next to me, with the same lost, hurt and angry expression I had learned to hide over the years.

"Here," she held out a clean tissue, gesturing for me to clean the blood off my hands. I don't know why, but I let the blood keep coming out of my hands and didn't reach for the tissue. She looked at me for a second and then she got a knowing look in her eyes. She surprised me by grabbing my hands in her own warm ones and carefully pressing on the small cuts to stop the blood. Once the blood was gone, she let my hands go and they tingled both from her touch and the sting from the cuts.

"Thanks," I found myself muttering and she just nodded.

After standing there for a few awkward minutes, I sat down on the ground, leaning back against the walls, and Max sat down next to me.

"You can't go home either?" she asked quietly, her gaze facing the opposite wall.

I shook my head no. "I would run away, but I have to protect my sister. She needs to stay and go to stay, and be at school and I can't leave her."

Max nodded in understanding. "Same. My sister probably wouldn't last a week without me," she sighed miserably. "I almost died one time…" she trailed off, looking deep in thought.

I was afraid to ask how or why since I had just gotten her name a few hours ago.

"My mom died because of him, and I almost did too," she said quietly, "Twice."

"I'm sorry," I said quietly. I surprised her and myself by saying, "Look I know we don't know each other that well but I'm here for you. If you ever need anything…" I trailed off; almost embarrassed by my sudden desire to befriend this girl who was so similar to me it was shocking.

But instead, she turned toward me and gave me a real smile. I'm the expert when it comes to fake smiles and real smiles because I can count on one hand how many times I've smiled for real in my life.

MPOV

And for the first time in my life I had someone who I could trust. Someone who understood. And for the first time in years, I smiled for real. I was actually happy, for the moment anyway.

"Thank you," I said louder, looking right into his eyes. They were really pretty actually; his eyes were that deep dark brown, almost black, with specks of gold swirling around in the darkness. "You're really cool. And don't worry; from now on I've got your back."

He looked up and flashed a smile that reached his eyes. To accurately describe his smile, I would say that the world pretty much stopped and the Sun would've stopped in its tracks. That smile lit up his sad and angry face and he looked happy and peaceful all in that one quick second.

"Me too. From here on out, I'm your man," he said with a small grin. I couldn't help but laugh. That laugh felt so good. It felt like I'd been holding all my happiness in, and blocking it all out. All of my problems at home just weighed me down and cancelled out all of my happy days and memories. My pain and problems all just stayed inside of me, like rocks. I couldn't exactly tell my family about my problems, so what was I supposed to do?

I sighed, "Thanks Fang."

He gave me a shy smile, "Thanks Max."

Congratulations, you have made your first real friend at high school, I told myself. Too bad I only have one more year after this to be here.

He sighed, and I felt the same way. Unfortunately the bell rang for class to be dismissed so we needed to actually go learn and get assigned homework and all that jazz.

FPOV

For the first time in ages, I was in a good mood. I was glad that I had finally made my first real friend at high school even if had taken 2 years. But being me, I just couldn't catch a break.

My favorite person ever, Lissa, (not), waltzed down the hallway with a group of girls at each side. I rolled my eyes and groaned inwardly as I watched them approached.

"What fresh new hell is this?" Max asked under her breath.

"Fang, I need you to explain something to me," Lissa began and since I didn't say anything she kept going. "I told you that you could sit with me at our table for lunch Fang! But why do you still choose to sit in the halls with garbage on the floor?" she asked slanting her gaze downwards to wear Max was sitting next to my old leather jacket.

Max opened her mouth with a definite retort ready at her lips, but I beat her to it. "If I was sitting with garbage I'd be at lunch with you." Since Lissa is a little slower than the average bear, it too her a second but then her face turned beet red and she opened her mouth but nothing came out. "Well…well…well…at least I'm pretty garbage!" she shrieked.

"Who did you pay to call you pretty?" Max asked with a glare in her eye as she reached for my jacket. I gave her a hand and she took it to help her stand up. I swear half the girls sighed romantically imagining themselves in Max's place, which I find insanely creepy.

"Come on Fang, let's go find the janitor so he can clean up the garbage clogging up this hallway," she told me glaring at Lissa one last time.

Lissa glared back but apparently couldn't think of anything else to say so she stayed quiet. Point one for Max, Lissa zero.

She flashed me a quick smile as we headed down the hallway and I smirked to myself. It's about time people stood up to Lissa. We stopped outside my locker to get some books and without saying anything Max leaned over and put my leather jacket over my shoulders. I'm probably just making this up, but her arms seemed to linger on my shoulders longer than they should've and I felt myself get flooded with warmth through my shoulders and I was starting to feel good inside. Like an actual person should feel.


End file.
